Itzulia Basque Country 2022 April 4-9

[Netserk]

Official website
Road book
Startlist
Official live tracker

 

[Netserk]

Starting times for the stage 1 ITT: https://itzulia.eus/en/itt-startlist/

 

[Devil's Elbow]

Route seems a bit weaker than usual. Stage 3 will either be great or mediocre, if the latter, then GC should stay closer than we normally see here until the final day.

 

[Netserk]

Route seems a bit weaker than usual. Stage 3 will either be great or mediocre, if the latter, then GC should stay closer than we normally see here until the final day.

It's quite dominated by the last day, previously as the ITT of the race, but I don't think this is better. Still, the similar stage last year was wonderful (under quite lucky circumstances).

The stages are quite good, I think we'll see relevant attacks and GC gaps on all the last four stages.

 

[roundabout]

If ever there was a race that needed climb details, it's this one.

 

[johnymax]

Route seems a bit weaker than usual. Stage 3 will either be great or mediocre, if the latter, then GC should stay closer than we normally see here until the final day.

I don't think the route is weak. Every day could be a GC day. Stage 3 is very dangerous and I agree, it can be great.

 

[Devil's Elbow]

If ever there was a race that needed climb details, it's this one.

I hope to be able to put something up later tonight still, exam week makes it hard to both do that and watch the final 2.5 hours of Ronde unfortunately...

 

[Libertine Seguros]

FINALLY the Monteabril side of El Vivero.
Climb detail

Also finally the full Endoia/Azurki doublette. Although you COULD descend from there into Elgoibar and go straight into the Krabelin/Arrate circuit from there. I'd have been tempted to go over Elosua (Gorla) from its harder side and descend down and head through the valley to climb Endoia/Azurki, that would have made the stage only about 115-120km but just non-stop horrible.

Also Hondarribia is one of my favourite little towns on the coast. I believe they will be ascending this road (the 200m @ 9% bit in the old town):

 

[Netserk]

If ever there was a race that needed climb details, it's this one.

In the road book. And it's very well done, good job by https://twitter.com/gregariosdelujo

Stage 3:

 

[Netserk]

Also finally the full Endoia/Azurki doublette. Although you COULD descend from there into Elgoibar

They finally did it in 2018, no?

 

[roundabout]

Still wonder how difficult are the uncategorized climbs towards the end of stages 2 and 3 (stage 3 especially)

 

[Libertine Seguros]

They finally did it in 2018, no?

They did, for some reason I had it in my head they'd approached Endoia from the west that time.

 

[Devil's Elbow]

Stage 2
Uitzi (neutralised until 3.7k below the summit)

Zuarrarrate

Lizarraga

Aguilar Gaina

Stage 3
Altube

Santuario de Oro (only as far as the junction to Domaikia)

Zarate

Garate

Opellora + Ozeka:

Lezama (the final ramp, only as far as the junction in the village)

Stage 4
Vivero

Unbe

Jata

Emerando

Urruztimendi

Vivero

The final 700 metres are slightly uphill, averaging 2.1% with the final 100 metres at 6% as per the roadbook.

(part 2 incoming)

 

[Devil's Elbow]

Stage 5
Morga

Paresi: the profile below...

...followed by a bit of flat, a downhill, 1.3k at 6.6% and the final 4.3k of this:

Natxitua

Bedarona

Gontzagariaga

Trabakua (until the junction to Mallabia)

Second ascent of Trabakua (until the junction to Berriz)

Garai

Karabieta

The ramp to the finish line is 600 metres at 10.5%, maxing out at 16% - check the roadbook for a profile.

Stage 6
Elkorrieta

Endoia + Azurki

Gorla

Krabelin

Urkaregi

Usartza + finish (final 7.5k only, preceded by the usual ramp of 500 metres at 9.4%)

 

[Sciatic]

Murito extravaganza!

 

[Logic-is-your-friend]

Starting times for the stage 1 ITT: https://itzulia.eus/en/itt-startlist/

Couldn't be arsed to look up and write down more, so here are some interesting names for the stage or for GC or curiosity. Anyone feel free to copy/expand. But at least for these names you don't have to pry your eyes out over the official list in order to read when they start.

Champoussin 14:31
Soler 14:41
Woods 14:51
Tulett 15:00
Oliveira 15:01
Nibali 15:03
Polanc 15:04
Tolhoek 15:11
Yates 15:23
Paret Peintre 15:38
Izagirre I. 15:45
Vansevenant 15:48
Vlasov 16:07
Martinez 16:09
Cavagna 16:11
Kuss 16:15
Van Gils 16:16
Padun 16:17
Gaudu 16:22
Buchmann 16:30
Alaphilippe 16:34
Covi 16:36
Mäder 16:37
Vingegaard 16:38
Leknessund 16:56
Latour 17:00
Higuita 17:04
Hart 17:08
Mas 17:10
Evenepoel 17:12
Roglic 17:20

Roglic last man out the door.

Not sure i get the idea behind having certain riders start with 2 minute intervals and others with 1 minute intervals, when no GC has been established yet and there is no logic in the starting order. Now you get certain contenders either for the stage or either for GC who get to start 1 minute behind a slower rider with a potential draft situation. While other stage or GC contenders have to wait 2 minutes.

 

[RedheadDane]

Jumbo with an interesting lineup:

Roglic, not-Chris Harper, Kuss, actual-Chris Harper, + some other guys.

 

[AlfaLum]

Couldn't be arsed to look up and write down more, so here are some interesting names for the stage or for GC or curiosity. Anyone feel free to copy/expand. But at least for these names you don't have to pry your eyes out over the official list in order to read when they start.

Champoussin 14:31
Soler 14:41
Woods 14:51
Tulett 15:00
Oliveira 15:01
Nibali 15:03
Polanc 15:04
Tolhoek 15:11
Yates 15:23
Paret Peintre 15:38
Izagirre I. 15:45
Vansevenant 15:48
Vlasov 16:07
Martinez 16:09
Cavagna 16:11
Kuss 16:15
Van Gils 16:16
Padun 16:17
Gaudu 16:22
Buchmann 16:30
Alaphilippe 16:34
Covi 16:36
Mäder 16:37
Vingegaard 16:38
Leknessund 16:56
Latour 17:00
Higuita 17:04
Hart 17:08
Mas 17:10
Evenepoel 17:12
Roglic 17:20

Roglic last man out the door.

Not sure i get the idea behind having certain riders start with 2 minute intervals and others with 1 minute intervals, when no GC has been established yet and there is no logic in the starting order. Now you get certain contenders either for the stage or either for GC who get to start 1 minute behind a slower rider with a potential draft situation. While other stage or GC contenders have to wait 2 minutes.

Are the teams allowed to decide the order in which riders take the starting spots?

 

[tobydawq]

Jumbo with an interesting lineup:

Roglic, not-Chris Harper, Kuss, actual-Chris Harper, + some other guys.

So it's interesting because Vingegaard and Harper are starting in the same race again?

 

[Red Rick]

I appreciate how Itzulia went from having the worst profiles to having the best profiles.

 

[RedheadDane]

So it's interesting because Vingegaard and Harper are starting in the same race again?

Maybe... and also because the Roglic - Vingegaard combo has proven to be quite interesting.

 

[Krzysztof_O]

So tight fight between Primoz and Remco until the penultimate stage, huh?

 

[search]

Also Hondarribia is one of my favourite little towns on the coast. I believe they will be ascending this road (the 200m @ 9% bit in the old town):

I think it's a different one, up to the church, but more or less similar, yeah. The following descent is on cobbles as well, although way less rough. In total it's around one k on somewhat cobbled surface.

 

[Libertine Seguros]

Jumbo with an interesting lineup:

Roglic, not-Chris Harper, Kuss, actual-Chris Harper, + some other guys.

I wish I could share your optimism that this would actually be interesting, but then again I also agree that if there was ever a race where the climbs were steep enough for Sepp Kuss then the Itzulia is it.

 

[wheresmybrakes]

Couldn't be arsed to look up and write down more, so here are some interesting names for the stage or for GC or curiosity. Anyone feel free to copy/expand. But at least for these names you don't have to pry your eyes out over the official list in order to read when they start.

Champoussin 14:31
Soler 14:41
Woods 14:51
Tulett 15:00
Oliveira 15:01
Nibali 15:03
Polanc 15:04
Tolhoek 15:11
Yates 15:23
Paret Peintre 15:38
Izagirre I. 15:45
Vansevenant 15:48
Vlasov 16:07
Martinez 16:09
Cavagna 16:11
Kuss 16:15
Van Gils 16:16
Padun 16:17
Gaudu 16:22
Buchmann 16:30
Alaphilippe 16:34
Covi 16:36
Mäder 16:37
Vingegaard 16:38
Leknessund 16:56
Latour 17:00
Higuita 17:04
Hart 17:08
Mas 17:10
Evenepoel 17:12
Roglic 17:20

Roglic last man out the door.

Not sure i get the idea behind having certain riders start with 2 minute intervals and others with 1 minute intervals, when no GC has been established yet and there is no logic in the starting order. Now you get certain contenders either for the stage or either for GC who get to start 1 minute behind a slower rider with a potential draft situation. While other stage or GC contenders have to wait 2 minutes.

Looks like the organisers don't want Roglic to catch Remco with 8 minutes between them.